This marcaje por soleá is interesting, I had fun trying to figure out what was going on.

As we discussed in the last tutorial - Braceo por soleá - soleá has a slow tempo and therefore we need to practice sustaining our movements. This is by no means an easy thing to do.

Firstly you need to have a strong understanding of what the compás feels like. Soleá for me has a feeling of breath, a deep breath that comes from the stomach.

You might find it feels like something completely different, what does it feel like for you? How can you put that into your dancing?

When you try this marcaje that we're going to show you, see what feelings you can layer into the movement.

Ok, let's learn this!

Pies

The pattern of the feet which you can see in the video below is very simple but rather than continue stepping through the whole compás we stop on count six.

If you have been practicing a particular marcaje for sometime, this might through you off your game a little.

If it does, not to worry, just take it slowly and practice the pattern as many times as it takes.

You'll see I keep my hands on my hips and don't move for 5 counts when I am practicing the feet. You should do that too. You need to feel those five counts as a part of the whole compás that you are dancing.

Pies y brazos

Now it is time to add in some arms. In the video below I demonstrate the arms without moving my wrists. It is always a good idea to try this if you are someone who has trouble coordinating your upper and lower body.

In the image below you see the starting position of the arms. They are held here from the first step out on count 12 until just after count five.

In the image below I am moving to my right and looking towards my left.

In the second half of the compás (when we've stopped moving our feet) you can see the movement of the arms in the photo below.

The arms move in a circle towards the direction you have been moving in.

In this case I'm moving to my right so my arms (the two arms together) come down (to the bottom of the circle) on count six, the keep moving to the right to continue the circle and arrive at the top (fifth position) count 8, the circle is completed on count 10 when the arms arrive once again at the bottom of the circle.

The arms then keep moving to the right back to the starting position, except now on the other side of the body and you are ready to step out on your left.

Watch the video below to see everything in action.

The movement in the video above looks very robotic. When you are learning something new that is FINE. We need to pattern the movement in our bodies first before we start adding in flourishes and trying to understand how we can really dance.

Once the movement feels comfortable you can add in some wrist circles and try dancing a bit more.

We hope you enjoy this marcaje!

If you're not sure what you need to practice to study flamenco dance you are welcome to join our 'Flamenco Bites Challenge'. It's a free week long email course that explains everything you need to know so you can practice with confidence.